Saturday, May 19, 2012

Palestinian protesters outside the headquarters of the International
Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) during a protest in Gaza City, to show
solidarity with Palestinian prisoners, May 13, 2012. (APA images)

Palestinian prisoner Bilal Diab is suffering frequent loss of consciousness and is close to death on his 77th day of hunger strike against his imprisonment without charge or trial by Israel.
Despite this, Israel continues to subject him to cruel, inhuman and
degrading treatment, blackmail and other unethical medical practices and
to deny him proper care, according to his own account provided in statement from Palestinian prisoners’ rights group Addameer.
Diab is one of several long-term hunger strikers who are at immediate risk of death according to Addameer. Diab, along with Thaer Halahleh,
are the longest strikers. Addameer’s lawyer was permitted to visit
Diab, and prisoners Hassan Safadi and Omar Abu Shalal at Ramle Prison
today.
About 2,000 Palestinian prisoners are estimated to have begun hunger strikes for basic rights on 17 April.

Shackled despite dire medical situation

According to Addameer:

Bilal is currently experiencing frequent loss of consciousness and
very low oxygen, hemoglobin and blood sugar levels. He is also suffering
from hair loss, pain in his joints, and blood in his stool. After
losing consciousness yesterday, Bilal was transferred to Assaf Harofeh
hospital. However, during his transfer and while in the hospital, Bilal reported being shackled by all of his limbs and subjected to additional ill-treatment. He considered this a breach of medical ethics and therefore refused any treatment at the hospital. He requested to be transferred to a different hospital under humane conditions and was then sent back to Ramleh prison.

Grave breaches of medical ethics

Diab told Addameer’s lawyer that Israel was blackmailing him with
family contact in order to compel him to take glucose and a vitamin
pill, a direct breach of World Medical Association (WMA) guidelines on
the treatment of hunger strikers. Addameer said:

In an attempt to further exert pressure upon Bilal, the Israeli
Prison Service (IPS) yesterday used communication with his family as a
bargaining chip to compel him to accept treatment. After agreeing to
take glucose yesterday and today, in addition to one vitamin pill today,
the IPS allowed him to make a phone call to his family last night, for
seven minutes only. He has been denied all family visits up to this
point in his hunger strike.

Physicians or other health care personnel may not apply undue
pressure of any sort on the hunger striker to suspend the strike.
Treatment or care of the hunger striker must not be conditional upon
suspension of the hunger strike.

Such pressure includes access to family, lawyers or care. Yet
according to consistent reports, Israel and its prison medical personnel
routinely breach this basic ethical code.

GAZA (Reuters) - Palestinian prisoners considered an
Egyptian-brokered deal on Monday aimed at ending a mass hunger strike
that is challenging Israel’s policy of detention without trial.

Some 1,600 prisoners, a third of the 4,800 Palestinians in Israeli
jails, began refusing food on April 17 in a protest that also included
demands for more family visits and an end to solitary confinement.

Full Addameer statement

Urgent: Addameer Visits Bilal Diab, Hassan Safadi and Omar Abu Shalal in Ramleh Prison Medical Clinic Today
Ramallah, 14 May 2012 - Bilal Diab’s health continues to deteriorate
dramatically, according to Addameer lawyer Mona Neddaf, who visited him
and two other long-term hunger strikers in Ramleh prison medical clinic
today. Along with fellow administrative detainee Thaer Halahleh, Bilal
Diab is on his 77th day of hunger strike today. Both Bilal and Thaer
have yet to be hospitalized in a public hospital, despite being at
immediate risk of death.

Bilal is currently experiencing frequent loss of consciousness and
very low oxygen, hemoglobin and blood sugar levels. He is also suffering
from hair loss, pain in his joints, and blood in his stool. After
losing consciousness yesterday, Bilal was transferred to Assaf Harofeh
hospital. However, during his transfer and while in the hospital, Bilal
reported being shackled by all of his limbs and subjected to additional
ill-treatment. He considered this a breach of medical ethics and
therefore refused any treatment at the hospital. He requested to be
transferred to a different hospital under humane conditions and was then
sent back to Ramleh prison. A similar incident also occurred last
Friday, 11 May, when he was transferred to Assaf Harofeh and refused to
accept treatment there due to his mistrust in the doctors as a result of
how he has been treated throughout his hunger strike.
In an attempt to further exert pressure upon Bilal, the Israeli
Prison Service (IPS) yesterday used communication with his family as a
bargaining chip to compel him to accept treatment. After agreeing to
take glucose yesterday and today, in addition to one vitamin pill today,
the IPS allowed him to make a phone call to his family last night, for
seven minutes only. He has been denied all family visits up to this
point in his hunger strike. Bilal further reported to Ms. Neddaf that he
had refused to meet with the IPS medical ethics committee last week
when they attempted to pressure him to take vitamins and other minerals.

Ms. Neddaf was also able to visit Hassan Safadi, currently on his
71st day of hunger strike, and Omar Abu Shalal, currently on his 69th
day of hunger strike, in Ramleh prison today. According to Ms. Neddaf,
both are in critical condition. Hassan has very low blood sugar and
received medication today for infections in his body. He is also taking
vitamins to support his heart muscle. Omar also agreed to start taking
minerals and salt two days ago. Both of them continue to demand their
immediate release from administrative detention.

Nine additional prisoners on hunger strike have also been newly
transferred to Ramleh prison medical clinic. Today is the 28th day of
Palestinian prisoners’ mass hunger strike.

Addameer renews its demand for the immediate transfer to independent
hospitals for all hunger striking prisoners whose medical conditions are
deteriorating. Addameer holds the Occupation responsible for the lives
of all prisoners on hunger strike and urges the international community
to continue exerting pressure on Israel in the strongest manner possible
to save their lives.

Break the Chains.info

is a news and discussion forum for supporters of political prisoners, prisoners of war, politicized social prisoners, and victims of police and state intimidation.

This blog is organized and updated autonomously of the disbanded Break the Chains Prisoner Support Network formerly based in Eugene, Oregon. While this online project shares several of the same concerns as the old Break the Chains collective, no formal organization exists behind the current web presence.

"I will never surrender my pride and dignity nor allow the system to 'cut my tongue' and I will always, without fear, speak out against these war crimes and crimes against humanity, no matter if I spend the rest of my life in a prison cage, and draw my last breath of air laying down in this steel bed surrounded by razor-wire fences and cages, and its prison policies that are designed to destroy one's humanity…."